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Commuter flight makes safe emergency landing at DUJ

FALLS CREEK — A commuter aircraft that had taken off from the DuBois-Jefferson County Airport landed safely minutes after take-off due to a mechanical issue Wednesday.

The plane — carrying 10 passengers total, according to Falls Creek VFD Chief Mark Miller — had just taken off, but around 2:38 p.m., the crew radioed the tower in order to make an emergency landing.

“They were showing some icing on the rear side of the wings,” Miller said, adding that the flight return to DuBois was a precautionary measure.

Miller said he believed the flight was en route to Hopkins International Airport in Cleveland, Ohio.

Scanner transmissions indicated that while the crew believed the wing situation was OK, it had still declared an emergency as it was cleared to land at Runway No. 215.

The Falls Creek and Warsaw Township fire companies were called to the scene for the plane’s landing, while Brockway, Reynoldsville and Pine Creek Township were called to their halfway points, or the halfway point between their stations and the airport, so they would be closer in the event of a further emergency.

Scanner transmission said around 2:49 p.m., the plane was about five miles from DUJ — about three minutes until arrival — and the plane landed safely around 2:54 p.m.

The Adrian Fire Company from Sandy Township and officials from Jefferson County EMA also responded, Miller said.

The DuSan and DuBois City Ambulance Services also responded for medical help, if needed, by passengers who departed the plane after it landed.